[Weekender] Who needs staff, when there are robots and tech-savvy customers?

At this year’s annual Seoul International Cafe Show which took place earlier this month, automation and smart devices such as drip coffee-making robots enjoyed the spotlight. “From smart coffee roasters to drip coffee-making robots, there were various opportunities to get a taste of the ‘smart cafe’ experience,” one official at the event said. These are the latest sign of automation and a demographic shift in South Korea where cashier-free stores have increasingly

ConsumerNov. 14, 2021

US Trade Representative to visit S.Korea next week

US Trade Representative Katherine Chi Tai will visit Seoul on Thursday, according to government officials on Sunday. It will mark the first time in 10 years for the country’s chief trade negotiator to visit South Korea since Free Trade Agreement talks were held in 2011. It is expected that Tai will discuss a number of economic and trade issues with South Korean counterparts including the semiconductor supply chain and a digital trade agreement. Other topics include incentives for South

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

Number of Koreans with W1b in assets climbs 10%

Amid liquidity-driven booms in the real estate and stock markets amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people with assets of more than 1 billion won ($847,000) increased by over 10 percent last year from a year earlier, a report showed Sunday.  The number of Koreans with financial assets worth over 1 billion won stood at 390,000 last year, taking up 0.76 percent of the total population, according to the Korea Wealth Report 2021 released by KB Financial Group Research Institute. The

MarketNov. 14, 2021

[Herald Interview] K-pop rises as retail investment option

Institutional and corporate investments have supported South Korean cultural contents such as the Oscar-winning movie “Parasite” and megahit Netflix series “Squid Game” on their way to global fame. And their success means a large return in profits from content, often considered as risky investment. A local online platform believes that market access to Korean content ready for production could open to a wider public as retail investors around the world are paying keen int

MarketNov. 14, 2021

Six Korean companies added to Dow Jones Sustainability World Index

Six Korean companies have been added to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI) said a public institution under the Ministry of Industry, Sunday. The six companies are Samsung Biologics, Kakao, SK Telecom, Hyundai Motors, logistics company Hyundai Glovis and car parts maker Hyundai Mobis, the Korea Productivity Center said. The Dow Jones Sustainability World Index is part of a larger family of Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) launched in 1999 as the first global sustainabilit

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

Hyundai Motor chief Chung Euisun reappointed as president of World Archery Asia

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun was approved as head of World Archery Asia, the biggest group promoting archery in Asia region, for the fifth time, the carmaker announced Sunday. Chung was reappointed as the institution’s president at the group’s general meeting held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday. Of the 28 member countries that attended the event, 26 voted in favor of Chung leading the association for the next four years, the group said. Following the appointment, Ch

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

Korea needs to invest more to meet wind power target: EY

South Korea is in need of more aggressive investment in renewable energy sector in order to achieve its offshore wind capacity goal by 2030 and address the country’s geographical weaknesses in wind energy, a report showed Sunday. Korea was ranked 21st in terms of attractiveness of renewable energy investment and deployment opportunities, in a report that announces the top 40 countries in the assessment, according to London-based consulting firm Ernst & Young. Korea has slid down the

MarketNov. 14, 2021

[Law Talk] Importance of internal controls for financial institutions

For the past year, the financial crisis caused by the unsound business practices of certain financial companies such as Lime, Optimus and companies that sold derivative-linked funds, has been the hottest topic within the financial industry. Following the eruption of these well-publicized scandals, financial supervisory authorities began sanctioning financial companies for unsound business practices, fraud perpetrated by fund managers, and misleading sales practices known as “incomplete sal

MarketNov. 14, 2021

CJ Logistics to invest W2.5t by 2023 to foster high-tech business sector

CJ Logistics Corp., the logistics arm of South Korean conglomerate CJ Group, said Sunday that it will invest 2.5 trillion won ($2.12 billion) by 2023 in a project to be reborn as an "innovative technology" firm, especially by strengthening platform-related businesses. The investment is largely aimed at upgrading its e-commerce and delivery operation amid the high popularity of ordering on mobile and online platforms. CJ Logistics said it will expand its fulfillment infrastructure by

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

[Battery+] Elon Musk wants LFP batteries for Tesla. Here’s why Korean battery trio shouldn’t produce them

Elon Musk strikes again. With every word he posts on Twitter, the market swings like a pendulum. From bitcoin to space, the eccentric leader’s influence has no bounds. This time, the Tesla CEO is shaking up the electric vehicle market by challenging the decades-long paradigm of lithium-ion batteries. Last month, Tesla announced that it would use a cheaper, safer alternative called lithium-iron phosphate, or LFP batteries, in all of its standard-range cars. Taken aback by Tesla&rsqu

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

Lee Jae-yong's US trip signals his return to Samsung management

After staying under the radar for more than three months since his parole in August, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Sunday revealed himself at an airport in Seoul leaving for an overseas business trip for chips and vaccine, signaling his return to the forefront of management. The Samsung Electronics executive arrived at Seoul Gimpo Business Aviation Center at around 7:45 a.m. on Sunday and hopped on a Korean Air charter flight to Canada after briefly talking to the press.

IndustryNov. 14, 2021

Computer failure causes massive disruption of budget carrier service

A computer system failure caused massive delays and cancellations of flights of Jin Air Co., a budget carrier, on Friday. The airline's passenger service system was down for 10 hours from 6:30 a.m., leaving thousands of passengers stranded at airports across the country. "The computer system failure occurred due to a problem in the server in Germany," Jin Air said. The system was restored at 4:40 p.m., it added. "We apologize for causing huge inconvenience to our customers.

MobilityNov. 12, 2021

Coinone wins approval, but Bithumb’s application still pending

South Korean crypto exchange Coinone has passed the high bar for official registration while the case of its bigger rival Bithumb remains pending, the country’s top financial regulator said Friday. The Financial Intelligence Unit, an anti-money laundering unit under the Financial Services Commission, approved Coinone’s application to register its virtual asset business but is holding off on a decision about Bithumb. Market insiders suggested that the delay might have something to

MarketNov. 12, 2021

FSS warns KakaoBank to strengthen anti-money laundering measures

South Korea’s financial watchdog on Friday warned online-only lender KakaoBank to improve its monitoring system that protects against money laundering. Financial Supervisory Service concluded that KakaoBank’s anti-money-laundering team lacks a monitoring process, relying only on receiving tips from other teams. As a result of weak monitoring, the online lender failed to ring the alarm on several cases that involved suspicious money transfers overseas, the FSS said. For instance,

MarketNov. 12, 2021

Finance Ministry forecasts rosy outlook for domestic demand

South Korea’s domestic demand is on its track for a recovery in line with the rebound in exports and the adoption of the “Living with COVID-19” scheme, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in its monthly report. “The Korean economy is recovering amid an ongoing improvement in exports and the job market,” the ministry said in a monthly report. “Domestic demand is likely to gradually rebound as the in-person service sector recovers due to eased quarantin

EconomyNov. 12, 2021

Krafton, Kakao Games to join MSCI Korea Index

Morgan Stanley Capital International said Friday that it has added six South Korean stocks, including local gaming giants Kakao Games and Krafton, to its regional emerging market index via November’s quarterly review. According to the capital market indexes provider, the rest of the list includes L&F, a battery materials manufacturer, fashion company F&F, diagnostics company SD Biosensor and Iljin Materials, an electronics components manufacturer. At the same time, it took thre

MarketNov. 12, 2021

Lee Jae-yong’s 2014 meeting with Goldman Sachs exec draws attention

A 2014 meeting between Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Gene Sykes of Goldman Sachs is drawing attention, sources said Friday, in connection with Lee’s alleged plans to inherit his father’s leadership role at Samsung. During a court hearing on Thursday, an email written by Sykes, then-head of mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs, was disclosed by Samsung’s lawyers as evidence for the defense. They say it counters prosecutors’ claims that Lee discus

TechnologyNov. 12, 2021

Seoul stocks spike 1.5% on bargain hunting

South Korean stocks surged by 1.5 percent Friday as investors scooped up oversold stocks after the recent slide. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 43.88 points, or 1.5 percent, to close at 2,968.8 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 655 million shares worth some 12.3 trillion won ($10.4 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 766 to 118. Foreigners bought a net 430 billion won, while retail investors sold 1

MarketNov. 12, 2021

Samsung to overhaul job ranking system for first time in 5 years

Samsung Electronics will overhaul its job ranking system for the first time in five years, Samsung Electronics said Friday. The move is seen as part of Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong’s plan to create a new Samsung one year after his father’s death. According to the company, the tech giant posted an internal message saying it would revise its evaluation and promotion system. “The change will be completed within this month and an official announcement will be made,” a comp

IndustryNov. 12, 2021

Posco to cut emissions by 320,000 tons with carbon capture, utilization tech

South Korean steel giant Posco said Friday that it would test the feasibility of a carbon capture and utilization technology that could potentially eliminate 320,000 tons of carbon emissions from steel production. According to the world’s No. 6 steelmaker, the technology, once fully developed, will be applied to coke ovens installed inside its two steel mills -- one in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, and one in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province. Each of the coke ovens emits 30,000-50,0

IndustryNov. 12, 2021